On Sunday I had a family day out in York[ish]. It was bloody freezing and very wet, so instead of going to a cosy family restaurant in York, we went for car part hunt, armed with countless numbers of tools and wellies just outside York.
Fairly recently I went to U-Pull-It and I was AMAZED. This car breakers place is just full of different makes of cars in a massive field, left to be ripped apart by wise people who are either searching for a missing part for their carriage or making a good business on ebay.
At the time I only had phone camera on me, so I swore that if I ever go back, I will document properly.
There are many reasons why U-Pull-It fascinates me.
First of all, it is the scenery – it is sad and strange. Car owners and drivers rely on their vehicles, take care of them, feed them, polish them, sometimes even name them, but once they end up in a scrap yard as a piece of metal with no purpose at all.
Some cars have been abused, some crashed, some totally ripped….it is the end of life for cars. A grave yard for cars.
The other reason why I am so drawn to this place is the environment and my childhood. My dad used to drag me into his ventures in similar places, or garages when he was dealing with one of his many vehicles. So I spent a lot of time with cars, tractors, car parts, wheelbarrows, engine oil and screws. The smell and the feel is so familiar to me. And I know if I could take my dad to U-Pull-It he would be over the moon.
The third reason is the things/items you can find on the grounds, in the cars and vans. Every car/van has a story to tell, similar to people. They had a owner, daily routes, garage and most importantly – the great purpose to serve.
This Jaguar S type has been raped and abused. My friend Laila was quite upset to see the state of this Jaguar as she is the owner of a gold Jaguar S type. She takes pride in her car and she was very confused of how the owner could let this happen.
And Robbie Williams CD case was empty. But I could take the Christmas earnings home if I wanted..free to a good home.
Some car owners had a sense of humour. Or they just reflected their personality…as I said, there are so many stories to guess and to be told, if only the cars could speak.
After a good hour and so I had some great photos, parts for ŠKODA and Fiat and numb fingers.
The guy at the reception/till was very lovely, didn’t mind me taking photographs and told us that U-Pull-It is packed in the summer.
Good reason for me to come back and photograph people within the grounds.
ANETE SOODA PHOTO 